


calm and (peaceful) quiet

by psychedelicbubblegum



Series: MASHverse [13]
Category: Marvel, Marvel 616, Marvel Cinematic Universe, X-Men (Comicverse), X-Men - All Media Types
Genre: Age of X-Man? don't know 'em, Domestic Fluff, F/F, F/M, Family Fluff, Kid Fic, Multi, Nate is just happy and I'm here for that, Newborn Children, Parenthood, Slice of Life, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, this is so ridiculously sappy but I just want some HAPPINESS
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-03
Updated: 2021-03-03
Packaged: 2021-03-17 23:22:06
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,024
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29724801
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/psychedelicbubblegum/pseuds/psychedelicbubblegum
Summary: Nate Grey has never been the kind of guy used to peacefulness. But his daughter's just been born...and in spite of all fears, he's just marveling in the moment.
Relationships: Kitty Pryde/Rachel Summers, Nate Grey/Ava Boudreax
Series: MASHverse [13]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/461542
Comments: 3
Kudos: 2





	calm and (peaceful) quiet

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Accidental_Ducky](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Accidental_Ducky/gifts).



The dusky hues of sunset were settled across the horizon when Nate’s daughter was born.

Mentally, he’d felt like a total paradox.

He was a superhero, hailing from a hellish world warped by strife and a cycle of would-be dictators; the legacy of two of the greatest mutants of all time; a well-versed dimensional traveler who had faced down more supervillains than he could count, all the while barely breaking a sweat...yet his wife’s labour had done nothing short of terrifying him.

Empathy allowed for a shred of the pain Ava had battled to bleed into Nate’s own senses, syphoning far too little yet unleashing unpleasant pin pricks beneath his nerves. Time should have given him less reasons to panic - the life of a hero was fraught with danger, both universes he’d called home taught that lesson most effectively - yet he still had nightmares about the time she’d been slashed by Harpoon; no scar left behind thanks to the properties of her Asgardian heritage, yet the memory was no less vivid.

Without the easing of their mental link, Ava would have certainly broken his hand, and he could only thank what little luck he seemed to have mustered over the years for sparing him a drive to the hospital. A benefit of existing in circles inhabited by the exceptional (be it resident geniuses, sorcerers-in-training or those capable of creating miniature, hand-held bombs). 

There were a lot of people qualified to monitor the pregnancy...but Cecelia Reyes operated out of the Xavier Institute, had the distinct honor of being the doctor to help Polaris give birth halfway between the Moon and Earth, and was impressively unphased by the general madness that followed both he and Ava’s families wherever they went.

Now though, with darkness having swept across the rich orange and lazy pink of the sky, even the smallest hints of chaos had dissipated. Bea lay on Ava’s chest, sleeping soundly, tiny hands curled in the blanket his grandma Elaine had knitted five months prior: soft tones of blue and pink, overlaid with white stars. Her hair was plastered against her forehead in wisps of pale blonde - destined to darken, however it wasn’t obvious if dark blonde or light brown would be the settled shade - tipped in white like his own, and she had Mari’s button nose.

His wife looked almost as peaceful, laying there in a sleep not quite as sound as Bea’s, but much needed nonetheless.

More than a little ironic, some would say, considering how she’d been trained extensively by the Valkyrie herself in combat and had continued to pay tribute to her Asgardian routes: both in fighting style and hero garb.

Ava’s hair was slipping from the bun she’d pulled it back into when the contractions had first begun, ends holding their lavender shade from where they curled against her cheeks. She’d changed into her pajamas while he’d taken their daughter to meet her grandparents - his mom and dad, Seb and Mari - and in turn, witnessed the humorously endearing sight of the First Official X-Man, Scott Summers, becoming teary eyed. Conrad was staying over at Rach and Kitty’s, preoccupied by Scooby Doo videos and a copious amount of Doritos. And Jackson’s phone had been handed over to Jana to prevent furious texts arriving every other minute.

Their daughter’s cheek was resting against the bottom of the ‘T’ which spelled out Hell Town. A souvenir he’d got for Ava while they’d been stuck in Bagalia for a while after tailing Spiral, living out their best supervillain impressions and observing the oddly pedestrian lives the Earth’s greatest threats seemed to enjoy there. (Then he’d had to go sneak back there because their son had insisted on getting a spectacularly demonic t-shirt of his own...)

_ Beatrice Eira Grey. _

Sister to Conrad Grey, aged six and a quarter, resident source of strange questions and impressive dinosaur trivia. Granddaughter of Mari Pierce, Sebastian Boudreax, Jean Grey and Scott Summers. Relative to over a dozen other superheroes, some up-and-coming, others well-established...

The relentlessly anxious part of him knew such a legacy carried a dozen dangers and follies. Bea’s mere name promised power to many dark corners - Nate’s own would-be-father, Sinister, among them - each with their own grand plots and malicious schemes; concentrated mixtures of unchecked egos, inferiority complexes and reckless infatuations with violence...but he and Ava would be damned before they let anything happen to her. They’d fought for her brother already, throwing themselves head first into chaos and a schism of tangled networks, to give him the happy childhood he deserved - and, call it arrogance, but Nate was confident they could pull it off again.

Yet, surrounded by the calm and quiet, he could leave that behind for a moment. He could further push forwards - away from the reality of heroics - once morning came and their son arrived with his big sister and her wife; Kitty no doubt insisting on phasing into the room as quickly as possible to coo over Bea.

Conrad would be boundless energy - hazel eyes sparkling with happiness, showing off his widest smile as he clambered onto the bed and promptly launched into his freshly formed questions about his little sister’s powers and the meaning behind her name (Mari had looked decidedly unconvinced when Luke had mentioned something about a guy he knew at college insisting name meanings influencing personality) - while Rachel shook her head (in what she’d claim was exasperation), but did absolutely nothing to dissuade anyone from continuing.

He could’ve made an attempt at glancing into the future - grant himself a sneak peak of what was about to come...but there was nothing about what was to come he wanted to spoil.

All the worries sank back once he glanced at two of the people he loved more than anything, the promise of more to arrive sat patiently on the horizon. There was no rush. No insistent urgency or cries of the worst scenario which could possibly descend. Just the simplest of concerns: like Bea being woken up once Conrad descended with tornado like speed and disrupted her nap. It was something Nate Grey would never tire of.

**Author's Note:**

> I was so surprised when it hit me that five years ago, the lovely Accidental_Ducky and I began collaborating on Marvel writing's together! So I wanted to celebrate with penultimate fluff and ridiculously over-the-top prose: my specialities. It's been an absolute joy, not to mention an honour, plotting and discussing ideas with her, so please give her credit for the Pierce/Boudreaux family, as they're entirely her creations who I'm just lucky enough to be borrowing for this piece. 
> 
> I just wanted to focus on something sweet, soft and tooth-rotting, but most of all, I hope it's an enjoyable read! Plus I bought back Threnody's child, here named Conrad and adopted by Nate and his wife Ava, as canon wasted him in my opinion. Let the poor boy have a chance!
> 
> (On a final note: Bea's middle name, Eira, means 'merciful' which...yeah Mari has every right to be skeptical about it influencing the girl's behaviour, knowing her family!)


End file.
